Instead of WW...

As I wrote yesterday, I'm taking a break from Weight Watchers. My "Dear John" letter yesterday was a bit tongue in cheek, but also very serious about some of the feelings I have toward the weight loss program right now.

It was about this week in 2005 that I joined WW for the first time. Yes, EIGHT years ago I first walked in the door. I weighed 232 pounds at the start and dropped about 40 pounds in less than 6 months and 65 pounds overall over the course of 2 years. So, I know the program works - I am proof of it!

BUT...

A lot has changed since 2005.

I'm not longer a single gal who has loads of time to plan, no one else to feed, and the metabolism of the 20-something!

Now I am pressed most days to get dinner on the table before two squawking toddlers melt down. Unfortunately, convenience foods often make their way on our table. And they (and my husband) are not fans of the tilapia, broccoli, rice dinner I ate every other day when I first started WW. And lord. Mid-30s sure do a number on your metabolism! I swear, I can gain 5lbs just by looking at a piece of candy or a cookie. Sigh...

Not that I"m making excuses. But still. Life is different.

But you know what's not different? Weight Watchers. Sure, now it's PointsPlus and 360 and the materials have changed and the logo is more modern and such. But as I said yesterday, the main basis of the program is to stay w/in your PP values, even if you're eating junk. I did that a lot. Pizza for lunch? It's OK. I can track it, keep w/in my PP value for the day and then move on. Afterall, nothing is "against" Weight Watchers diet plan. You can have what you want!

But that wasn't working for me anymore. I'm not sure what was going wrong, but eating junk, yet staying in my PP value for the week caused either minimal weight loss --- like 7.some pounds over the course of TWO YEARS -- or a bit of gain every week to be followed by a loss the week after.

Beyond frustrating!

Most importantly - after 8 years the information I receive at WW every month is already something I've heard. I am not learning anything new, which is leading to my lack of motivation. My friend Andrea and I (who also joined WW in 2006 or 2007) always say there needs to be a Weight Watchers Advanced for those of us have been around the block a time or two. I don't need to be told to track. No, I need ideas to make it interesting again. I need ways to spark motivation. I need to learn about foods that fuel my body to work to its full potential. I need to learn how to eat when I'm training for a race and what to do with my 35+ Activity Points per week. I'm not getting any of that right now.

So, I am taking this week and tracking on My Fitness Pal, a free online/App calorie counter. It is different counting calories than points. It's harder (for now), but it's just different enough that it's holding my interest. Most different I can see so far: no more "free" fruits and vegetables. My banana at breakfast on WW was 0 points. On MFP, it's 105 calories.

Maybe THAT is the spark I'll need to get the weight off again. Not that I think I'm 40lbs overweight because I eat too many bananas, but it must count for something.

Anyway, I do plan to go to WW on Saturday to "officially"weigh in and see if doing something different did something different. Then I'll decide to become a WW drop out or not.